Gaming machines which provide players awards in primary or base games are well known. Gaming machines generally require the player to place or make a wager to activate the primary or base game. In many of these gaming machines, the award is based on the player obtaining a winning symbol or symbol combination and on the amount of the wager (e.g., the higher the wager, the higher the award). Symbols or symbol combinations which are less likely to occur usually provide higher awards.
In such known gaming machines, the amount of the wager made on the base game by the player may vary. For instance, the gaming machine may enable the player to wager a minimum number of credits, such as one credit (e.g., one penny, nickel, dime, quarter or dollar) up to a maximum number of credits, such as five credits. This wager may be made by the player a single time or multiple times in a single play of the primary game. For instance, a slot game may have one or more paylines and the slot game may enable the player to make a wager on each payline in a single play of the primary game. Thus, it is known that a gaming machine, such as a slot game, may enable players to make wagers of substantially different amounts on each play of the primary or base game ranging, for example, from 1 credit up to 125 credits (e.g., 5 credits on each of 25 separate paylines). This is also true for other wagering games, such as video draw poker, where players can wager one or more credits on each hand and where multiple hands can be played simultaneously. Accordingly, it should be appreciated that different players play at substantially different wagering amounts or levels and at substantially different rates of play.
Secondary or bonus games are also known in gaming machines. The secondary or bonus games usually provide an additional award to the player. Secondary or bonus games usually do not require an additional wager by the player to be activated. Secondary or bonus games are generally activated or triggered upon an occurrence of a designated triggering symbol or triggering symbol combination in the primary or base game. For instance, a bonus symbol occurring on the payline on the third reel of a three reel slot machine may trigger the secondary bonus game. Part of the enjoyment and excitement of playing certain gaming machines is the occurrence or triggering of the secondary or bonus game (even before the player knows how much the bonus award will be). In other words, obtaining a bonus event and a bonus award in the bonus event is part of the enjoyment and excitement for players.
One such secondary or bonus game provides a player one or more free spin sequences. In these gaming devices, upon an occurrence of a triggering event in the primary game, the gaming device temporarily halts the primary game play and enables a player to enter a free spin mode or sequence wherein one or more free spins are provided to the player. The player plays the free spin mode or sequence, likely receives an award during one or more of the free spins and returns to the base game. Free spin mode or sequences that provide players with large awards or the potential to win large awards are attractive to players.
Progressive awards associated with gaming machines are also known. A progressive award is an award amount which includes an initial amount funded by a casino and an additional amount funded through a portion of each wager made on the progressive gaming machine. For example, 0.1% of each wager placed on the primary game of the gaming machine associated with the progressive award may be allocated to the progressive award or progressive award fund or pool. The progressive award grows in value as more players play the gaming machines and more portions of these players' wagers are allocated to the progressive award. When a player obtains a winning symbol or symbol combination associated with the progressive award, the accumulated progressive award is provided to the player. After the progressive award is provided to the player, the amount of the next progressive award is reset to the initial value and a portion of each subsequent wager on a gaming machine associated with a progressive award is allocated to the next progressive award.
A progressive award may be associated with or otherwise dedicated to a single or stand-alone gaming machine. Alternatively, a progressive award may be associated with or otherwise dedicated to multiple gaming machines which each contribute a portion of wagers placed at such gaming machine(s) to the progressive award. The multiple gaming machines may be in the same bank of gaming machines, in the same casino or gaming establishment (usually through a local area network (“LAN”)) or in two or more different casinos or gaming establishments (usually through a wide area network (“WAN”)). Such progressive awards are played for by one or more gaming devices in the same gaming establishment sometimes called local area progressives (“LAP”) and such progressive awards played for by a plurality of gaming devices at a plurality of different gaming establishments are sometimes called wide area progressives (“WAP”).
Moreover, a gaming machine or bank of gaming machines may be simultaneously associated with a plurality of progressive awards. In these multi-level progressive (“MLP”) configurations, a plurality of progressive awards start at different award or value levels, such as $10, $100, $1000 and $10,000 and each individually increment or increase until provided to a player. Upon a suitable triggering event at one of more of the gaming devices associated with the MLP, one or more of the progressive awards which form the MLP are provided to one or more of the players at such gaming devices.
Mystery bonus awards are also known. For instance, U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,655,961, 5,702,304, 5,741,183, 5,752,882, 5,820,459, 5,836,817, 5,876,284, 6,162,122, 6,257,981, 6,319,125, 6,364,768, 6,375,569, 6,375,567, RE37,885 and U.S. Pat. No. 6,565,434 describe mystery bonus awards and certain methods for providing such awards to players. These patents also describe certain methods for determining which gaming machines will provide the awards to players. These patents further describe methods for a central server to determine which gaming machines will provide the bonus awards and the amount of the bonus awards.
PCT Application No. PCT/AU98/00525, entitled “Slot Machine Game And System With Improved Jackpot Feature” discloses a jackpot awardable to a plurality of gaming machines connected to a network. Upon each play of each gaming machine, a jackpot controller increments the value of the jackpot. Prior to each primary game, the gaming machine selects a random number from a range of numbers and during each primary game, the gaming machine allocates a plurality of numbers in the range, where the plurality of numbers is proportional to the wager. At the end of the primary game, the randomly selected number is compared with the numbers allocated to the player and if a match occurs, that particular gaming machine is switched into a feature game mode in which a jackpot game is played for all or part of the incremental jackpot.
PCT Application No. PCT/AU99/01059, entitled “Player Information Delivery” discloses a gaming console in which an animated character occasionally randomly appears and awards a player a variable random bonus prize. The occurrence of the animated character is weighted by the desired hit rate of the feature and is dependent upon the player's bet and may or may not be dependent upon the size and type of the player's bet. Additionally, the gaming console includes a bonus pool (funded by the player) and a random decision is made whether the contents of the bonus pool will be awarded in addition to any other win.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,241,608 B1 entitled “Progressive Wagering System” discloses a linked progressive wagering system specifying a boundary criteria, such as a maximum value or an expiration date and time, for a progressive award prize. If a gaming device has not randomly generated a prize award event when the specified boundary criteria is met, a progressive award prize is forced by the system upon one or more randomly selected participating players.
While such mystery progressive awards are popular amongst players, a number of problems exist with these known mystery progressive award systems. First, only one person wins the progressive award. This may discourage the other players who have also been playing for a long period of time. Such discouragement can lead to players walking away with jackpot fatigue. Jackpot fatigue can occur when a player no longer finds an award desirable or worth the cost of continuing to play. This desire to quit playing is also due to the fact that a player may feel they must wait a substantial period of time for the jackpot to climb back to a high value. That is, when a progressive award is provided at a different gaming machine, a player may feel deflated and not wish to continue playing for a base or reset level progressive award.
Additionally, because the mathematics and funding required to maintain the mystery progressive awards at levels desirable to the player, such mystery progressive awards are often won or hit infrequently.
There is a continuing need to provide new and different gaming machines and gaming systems as well as new and different ways to provide awards to players including bonus awards.